Employee Cost Calculator
Work out what an employee really costs a year, a month and an hour: salary and bonus plus the employer taxes, pension, benefits and equipment you enter.
- Free
- No sign-up to try
- Works as you type
Employee cost
Total yearly cost
$81,950
Cost on top of base salary
36.6%
Monthly cost
$6,829
Cost per hour worked
$47.65
- Pay = base salary + bonus.
- Employer taxes and pension = pay × the rates you enter.
- Total = pay + employer taxes + pension + benefits + equipment + other costs.
- Monthly cost = total ÷ 12; cost per hour = total ÷ hours worked.
Free, no sign-up to try. Save it as a live calculator you can share; an estimate from the numbers and rates you enter, not financial or tax advice. Rates differ by country and change: check the ones that apply to you before you rely on it.
How it works
How the Employee Cost Calculator works
- 1
Enter your numbers
Every result updates as you type, with the formula shown under it.
- 2
Check the method
See how each number is worked out and what it assumes.
- 3
Save it as a Room
Share a live calculator: others can change the numbers and see the result update.
Worked example
What it makes
Example inputs
- Base salary per year
- $60,000
- Bonus and other taxable pay per year
- $3,000
- Employer payroll taxes and contributions (your rate)
- 10 %
- Employer pension or retirement contribution
- 5 %
- Benefits per year (health cover, insurance, allowances)
- $4,000
- Equipment, software and licences per year
- $2,500
- Other costs per year (space, training, share of recruiting)
- $3,000
- Hours worked per year, after leave and holidays
- 1,720 h
Results
- Total yearly cost
- $81,950
- Cost on top of base salary
- 36.6%
- Monthly cost
- $6,829
- Cost per hour worked
- $47.65
How it's calculated
- Pay = base salary + bonus.
- Employer taxes and pension = pay × the rates you enter.
- Total = pay + employer taxes + pension + benefits + equipment + other costs.
- Monthly cost = total ÷ 12; cost per hour = total ÷ hours worked.
- Assumes: The default rates are placeholders, not any country's rates: enter the employer rates that apply to you.
- Assumes: Both rates apply to all pay; thresholds, caps and allowances in real payroll rules are not modelled.
- Assumes: The employee's own income tax and deductions come out of their salary and are not an extra cost to you.
An estimate from the numbers and rates you enter, not financial or tax advice. Rates differ by country and change: check the ones that apply to you before you rely on it.
Who it's for
Who uses it
Founders
Budget a first hire with every on-cost counted.
Hiring managers
Show finance the full cost of a new role.
Finance teams
Compare the cost of an employee with a contractor's rate.
Good to know
What to consider
- Employer tax and pension rates are yours to enter: the defaults are placeholders, not any country's rates.
- Real payroll rules have thresholds and caps; check the figure with your payroll provider or accountant.
- An estimate, not tax advice.
Questions
About the Employee Cost Calculator
How much more than salary does an employee cost?
It depends on your country's employer taxes, your pension and benefits, and equipment. Enter your own rates and costs; the calculator shows the cost on top of base salary as a percentage.
Can I share the calculator with my team or a client?
Yes. The Room keeps the calculator live: anyone with the link can change the numbers and see the result update, with the method and assumptions on the same page.
Make your calculator now
Free, no sign-up to try. It becomes a Room you can edit, publish and share.
Create my calculatorRelated
Related tools
- Salary to Hourly CalculatorTurn a yearly salary into its hourly, daily, weekly and monthly equivalent, using your own hours per week and paid weeks per year.
- Cost Per Hire CalculatorAdd up internal and external recruiting costs for a period and divide by the hires you made, to see what each new hire cost.
- Overtime Cost CalculatorWork out overtime pay per week from the hourly rate, overtime hours and multiplier you set, and its total cost across employees and weeks.